


Delicate

by elenilote



Category: EXO (Band), NCT (Band), SHINee, SuperM (Korea Band)
Genre: Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, M/M, Pining, Polyamory Negotiations, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-16
Updated: 2020-09-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:09:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26493898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elenilote/pseuds/elenilote
Summary: Ten is pining after Taemin, Taemin is pining after Ten and Taeyong takes action to get them all moving somewhere
Relationships: Kim Jongin | Kai/Lee Taemin, Lee Taemin/Lee Taeyong/Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten, Lee Taeyong/Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten
Comments: 4
Kudos: 57





	Delicate

**Author's Note:**

> I don't even know what to call this ship, TaeTenMin? Anyway, soft boys being soft for each other.
> 
> Inspired by [this perfomance of NCT's Baby Don't Stop](https://youtu.be/WGrmUTx0gc0)

It started out as a joke, a lost bet - "pretend to be boyfriends for the day". They had and rather well, their fans had loved it and the producers were ecstatic with the rise in ratings. But by the time they’d gone back to their shared hotel room at the end of the night, it had felt real. Taeyong had been the brave one, confessing that he would like to try being boyfriends for real first, Ten had felt...not scared exactly - even if Taeyong didn't feel the same way he did, he wouldn't be cruel about it - but frustrated with himself, his Korean was still a bit wobbly so what if he'd say the wrong thing? So it had been a relief to hear from Taeyong first.

They'd gone to sleep in the same bed that night and Ten had been woken up in the morning by Taeyong's kisses for the first time. It was easy to hide their budding relationship in plain sight, everyone expected them to goof off together anyway and especially after 'Baby Don't Stop' came out, they were able to do pretty much whatever they wanted on stage and the fans would scream and the management would love the increase in sales and social media hits. But it wasn't until they'd been chosen for SuperM and got to know (the very amazing and very famous) Taemin that their little bubble of two started to feel a little too small. 

See, despite Taeyong being the older one ( _only by nine months, thank you!_ ), it had always been Ten looking after him and taking care of him. It wasn’t that Taeyong couldn’t mind himself but it felt good having someone else care about you enough to do that. And Ten genuinely enjoyed looking after his boyfriend, making sure he ate and slept enough, didn’t work himself too hard and took a real break every now and then. He’d been in the entertainment business for longer than Taeyong and had seen first-hand how quickly you could burn out if you overexerted yourself. But that left Ten feeling...not unsatisfied exactly, but like he was missing something? He loved Taeyong so much and knew he could trust in his love and support in all things in return but...sometimes he wanted to be the one taken care of, that someone would look at him and go ‘I’ll take care of you, don’t worry about anything’. Because Ten worried, about a lot of things. He worried about his family back in Thailand and how rarely he got to see them. He worried about his friends in China and how they were doing, with him and Lucas working on SuperM their involvement in WayV had been reduced and it was hard keeping the two projects separate. And maybe most of all Ten worried about messing up himself, there were days when he didn’t know what language he was speaking - memorably on one occasion scrambling Korean, Mandarin, Thai AND English in the same sentence - and on camera no less. That hadn’t gone down well with the management (though had been a hit with the fans so they hadn’t told him off too badly) and he’d been told to pay more attention at his Korean lessons. 

Then they had been told that they’d be part of a new supergroup along with fellow NCT members Lucas and Mark as well as EXO’s Baekhyun and Kai and of course, Taemin. EXO were generally considered the most influential group in the industry; they’d been around for almost a decade so working with Kai already left Ten a bit starstruck. But Taemin was a whole another level. Not only had SHINee been around for 12 years by now (almost half of Ten’s life!) but Taemin was a legend in his own right. Of course they’d met many times - working under the same management meant a lot of shows and interviews together - and Taeyong had developed a major crush on him that bordered on hero worship but they’d never really...gotten to _know_ one another _._  
  
Taemin was a chameleon really, the difference between the sexy, dangerous persona he portrayed on stage and in his videos and the quiet, gentle guy he was in person was huge. He was devastatingly gorgeous and incredibly sexy when he performed on stage - Ten and Taeyong had shared many fantasies about how it would feel to be on the receiving end of that charisma. But the real Taemin was so different, better even. He smiled all the time and at everyone, the sort of a smile that made you feel seen and appreciated - like he was paying attention to _you_ personally. And he always noticed when one of the others was in trouble or simply needed something - and he did it so naturally you almost didn’t notice if you weren’t paying attention. But Ten was. And so was Taeyong - he was actually the first to bring it up one night after they’d gone to bed. 

“He’s just like you, takes care of everyone.” 

Ten had hmmed in response, he’d noticed the same. But now his daydreams were about Taemin taking care of him instead, about having that attention focused on Ten and not everyone. But what did that mean for him and Taeyong? How could he be daydreaming about another guy while pretending to be a loving boyfriend? Thing was, he really did love Taeyong so much and would honestly be heartbroken if they’d ever separate but...he had all these feelings towards Taemin too. He didn’t even know if Taemin liked guys so it was all hypothetical and, in any case, he wouldn't cheat on Taeyong - not even with Taemin. 

But he hadn't counted on his boyfriend noticing. It was a few weeks into their tour and Ten was having a hard time concentrating. The shows were a mix of their respective solos and group performances and that meant watching Taemin set the stage on fire every night of the tour and then walk off it at the end of the night to shed off the mask and return to the sweet and gentle Taemin they all saw off stage. And Ten literally had to take refuge in the bathroom and cool off for ten minutes before returning to the others, he was feeling all kinds of turned around - Taemin was just... _so much_ to take in.

"So...Taemin was spectacular tonight, wasn't he? I mean, how does he even move in those leather pants like that...man, what wouldn't I give to see him take them off at the end of the night..."

"Tyong! What the fuck? You..." In the seven years they'd known one another, Ten had never heard Taeyong comment on another guy like that, not even jokingly. 

"What, I can't look? I'm not blind, he's seriously gorgeous and don't pretend I haven't noticed you looking as well," Taeyong teased, getting up from the sofa where he'd been lounging like a lazy cat just a moment ago and wrapping his arms around Ten from behind. "I didn't want to say anything - you can look all you want as long as you don't touch and still come home with me but...come on bae, these last few weeks you've been moping around like a lovesick puppy. It's a miracle no one else has noticed - like, I'm pretty sure they haven't but you know, you should probably tone it down a bit."

Ten groaned and leaned back against Taeyong. 

"I don't know any more! It's awful, I mean he's just so...perfect. He's always so sweet and nice and everything, not to mention crazy sexy on stage - but I love _you_ and I shouldn't think like that about someone else - and he's not even into guys! - but I can't help it..." 

"You know bae, for a smart guy you can be awfully stupid sometimes. For one, Taemin is _definitely_ into guys - him and Kai used to date back in the day - and I know this cause I talked to Kai and he mentioned it - just like that, like it was no big deal. So I was all 'what, like it's not a secret?' and he laughed and said that no, it was the worst-kept secret at SM and that definitely all of SHINee and EXO knew about them. And two, people have multiple partners all the time these days. Like, I can share..." 

Seriously, tonight was going to be the death of him, with just a few words Taeyong had practically turned Ten's worldview upside down - Taemin and Kai had dated and _everyone_ knew? Well, everyone except him apparently. And... hang on, what was that about sharing?? Ten turned around to frown at his boyfriend who was looking awfully smug.

"Hang on, what do you mean about sharing? I never asked you to share anything, that's not what this is. It's just a silly crush and I'll get over it - I'm not going to ruin what we've built just for a _maybe_ with someone else!" 

"No, you idiot," Taeyong laughed. "What I meant is that you might actually have more than a maybe chance with him and I would be OK with that - I won't love you any less if you hook up with Taemin every now and then - also I think he's stupidly hot too so it would be great daydream material thinking of you two together."

It wasn't often - probably never - that Ten didn't find something to say. But he truly did not know how to respond, was Taeyong seriously suggesting that Ten just walk up to Taemin and say "hey by the way, my boyfriend thinks we should hook up - how about it?"? He was not sure that was such a good idea...

Things came to a head a few days later. They were flying to the next stop on tour and Ten got hurt. He hadn't been paying attention to where he was walking, instead had been distracted by his phone and as a result had tripped and fallen over - aggravating his old knee injury. Taeyong had practically carried him to the car while Baekhyun had fussed over them both and Kai had picked up Ten's bags from the carousel. If the rest of the group hadn't known him and Taeyong were together, they did now - the way Taeyong had taken care of him had been way more than just friends being friends. 

Taeyong had (reluctantly) gone off to pick up dinner for them both and Ten had promised not to do anything stupid while he was gone. So he was sitting on the sofa at the apartment with an ice pack on his knee, which was uncomfortably propped up on the chair opposite. He'd been scrolling through the comments on their social media and replying to fans when he found something especially funny or touching. So he could be forgiven for letting out a very undignified shriek as he felt a hand on his knee. 

"Hey, I didn't meant to spook you, but I did call your name a few times," Taemin smiled at Ten where he was perching on the end of the sofa, holding the almost-melted ice pack on Ten's knee in place - seemed like it had almost fallen off and Taemin had rescued it. 

"No no, thank you for rescuing it - I'm the one who should have paid attention. Um, have a seat?" 

Oh god, could he sound any more like a total moron. Taemin just smiled and sat down properly next to Ten. 

"I saw Taeyong on the way in and he asked me to check on you, he said he'd be a while yet and didn't want you to be alone. You two seem tight, how long have you been together?"

"Um, a few years now - five I think, properly? We haven't exactly advertised it, weren't sure the management would approve and you know, it's not exactly going to go well with the general public either." 

Taemin smiled at that, "Things were different for me and Kai, we were in a more secure place in our careers when we were together - they couldn't very well fire either one of us. So we were able to be pretty open among our friends, and everyone here is fine with you two by the way - please don't feel that you have to hide anything."

Why did Taemin had to be so perfect? He was just making things harder, being so nice and lovely and attentive - Ten was feeling frustrated to the point of tears at his stupid feelings and how they were making things difficult. Why couldn't he just like Taemin as a friend and a colleague and leave it at that? Cause not like Taemin would ever see him as anything else than that. 

"Yeah, yeah thanks. We'll probably keep things quiet anyway, I mean we won't hide with you guys of course but I don't think we'll go around announcing it to anyone else - no business of theirs what we do. Can I...can I ask why you and Kai called it off? You guys are obviously still best friends so why aren't you together? If it's not too personal, sorry...I shouldn't pry," but Ten was genuinely curious. Taemin and Kai clearly had a very special relationship and were incredibly close so he couldn't quite figure out why they'd broken up what had been a long relationship. 

"Oh we didn't break up as such, just...we found we worked better as friends and decided to invest in that so as not to cost each other another chance at loving someone else. He's still my best friend and the most important person outside my hyungs but that's all." 

They sat in companionable silence for a bit, until Ten's phone beeped with a message from Baekhyun _"We're on our way back with dinner, Taem still with you?"._ Ten typed up a quick "yes" in reply and turned to Taemin to find him studying Ten intently. 

"Um, so Baekhyun texted that they're on their way up with dinner...did I miss something?"

"I was just thinking about something Kai was saying earlier...now that we know you guys are a couple a lot of things make sense. Like the way you always take care of Taeyong first, you always make sure he's fine before doing anything else. Like, you make sure he's eating at dinner and check up on him at rehearsals and after each performance. We all do that to a degree to one another but it's like I'm seeing your interactions in a different light now. But makes me wonder, who looks after you?" 

Ten had to look away at that. It hit a bit too close to what he'd been wanting and dreaming about. 

"I'm good, really. Taeyong looks after me just fine, he's been super great today." 

Taemin shifted ever-so-slightly closer and petted Ten's knee above the ice pack. 

"Yeah but you'll still make sure he's alright even when you're hurt - won't you? You'll fuss over his eating and make sure he goes to bed early and gets up in time for hair and makeup and even when you can't dance - cause you _won't_ tomorrow, that's for sure - you'll go over his routine and make sure it's tight. So it looks to me like you're not getting a whole lot taken care of here. So I was thinking, maybe you would like someone to take care of you? Like, maybe that someone could be me?"

"Ahh, what? You...sorry hyung, I don't think I understood that right. You want to...you want me? I...can't, Taeyong and me...I wouldn't leave him!" 

Ten was so very confused now. What the fuck was happening, and how did he get out of this without damaging the group dynamics and losing Taemin's friendship.

"I wasn't saying you should leave Taeyong, was I? Ten, honestly just listen to me for a minute, please? It's been brought to my attention that I may have been...not quite as observant as I should have been lately. It was Taeyong who came to me and told me quite firmly to stop being an idiot and tell you how I feel. He also made it clear that you and him came as a package deal, if I wasn't up to the task then I should leave you well alone." 

He was going to kill Taeyong. Or at least seriously tell him off. God how embarrassing was it to have your boyfriend go talk to your crush cause you were too much a coward to do it yourself? And hang on, was this what Taeyong had talked about earlier - sharing?? That what, the three of them? How would that even work? And oh god how would the sex work? Ten was going to have a panic attack at this rate, and that would be bad so he took a few deep breaths trying to center himself and closed his eyes. 

Taemin hadn't moved from where he was - if anything he was closer than before - but he kept quiet, just waiting for Ten to get himself together. 

"OK so...I'm still confused and Taeyong should totally not have told you all my secrets but too late to worry about that. So...hypothetically, if I would like you to take care of me...how would it even work? I'm barely managing one boyfriend, let alone two - and how would we explain it to everyone else?"

"Happily you're saved the trouble, seeing as everyone knows now anyway - seriously, have you guys ever heard of closing the door when you're having a private conversation," Baekhyun called from the doorway where he stood with the takeaway - Ten had forgotten the gang were on their way back. "So now that's out of the way, how about some dinner?" 

Before Ten managed to die of embarrassment, Taeyong came up and deposited himself on Ten's lap and leaned over to plant a kiss on Taemin's cheek. 

"I'm good with everything, OK? Seriously guys, we can talk details later but please can we eat now, I'm _starving_!" 

With that, everyone else piled in and while Ten was sure everyone had a million questions, he was grateful for his friends' kindness at not asking any - even Lucas who was clearly bursting with curiosity kept the chat to safe topics only. 

Well. That went well. Or, well enough. They still had a whole lot to talk about, if they were really going to have a go at this - and Ten really wanted to, and not just one-time hook-up but maybe something a bit more long-term. So he tightened his hold on Taeyong and leaned against Taemin on the sofa - yeah, this could be good. 

**Author's Note:**

> Tyong is Taeyong's nickname among close friends and family


End file.
